If you're looking for a way to get fit fast, your best option is getting a home gym. You can work every muscle group without leaving the house.
The Body Solid EXM2500S Home Gym is a great choice.
In this EXM2500S home gym review, we'll cover everything you need to know to help you decide if it's the right choice for you.
- Our Review Of The Body Solid EXM2500S Home Gym
- Pros & Cons Of The Body Solid EXM2500S
- Unique Features Of The Body Solid EXM2500S Home Gym
- Comparing EXM2500S With Other Body Solid Home Gym Models
- Comparisons With Other Home Gyms Brands
- Assembling Instructions & General Maintenance Information
- Frequently Asked Body Solid EXM2500S Questions
- Conclusion
Our Review Of The Body Solid EXM2500S Home Gym
Our Ratings
Workout Versatility
9.0
Value For Money
8.0
Ease Of Use
9.5
Ease Of Assembly
7.5
Materials & Durability
9.5
Overall Rating
8.7
Specifications
Dimensions | 83 x 51 x 83 inches (L x W x H) |
Weight | 446 lbs |
Total Resistance | 210 lbs |
Warranty | Yes, Lifetime |
With the option of performing over 30 exercises across 6 exercise stations, our EXM2500S home gym review certainly has a lot to cover.
Our general impression is that this gym makes an excellent choice for the beginner or intermediate user, and with home gyms more popular than ever, it’s essential to know how this one stands out [1].
We’ll break down our specific thoughts into five sections.
Build Quality
The Body Solid EXM2500S dimensions are moderate compared to other gyms, and the materials used in its construction are top-notch.
The steel is 12 gauge, resistant to corrosion, and can take the pressure of the entire 210lb weight stack during use.
The pulleys on the Body Solid EXM2500S home gym are reinforced with fiberglass and contain ball bearings that help with prolonged use.
The pulley cables have a tensile strength of 2200 lbs.
They’re also coated in PVC material to prevent scratches. The only minor issues are the lack of holes for drilling into the floor and stabilizers in the base tubes.
Ease of Use
Our Body Solid EXM2500S review also revealed that the gym is very satisfying to use.
Seats with DuraFirm padding ensure that you’re comfortable while seated, and the chest press seat is particularly accommodating, offering you 7 height options.
The rollers with the leg developer station add comfort there too, and you’ll benefit from using the ab and triceps strap that comes with the home gym.
Overall, we felt that this gym was very simple to use once assembled. Although, as we’ll reveal later, assembly is a challenge.
Upper Body Exercises
You’ll benefit from plenty of upper-body exercises with this home gym.
There isn’t a specific Body Solid EXM2500S exercise chart, but there are lists of the exercises you can perform.
For your upper body, you’ll benefit most from the chest press, perfect pec, and high pulley stations. You can use the cables in the ways we mentioned above to perform intense workouts.
Examples of the exercises you can do include:
Related Article - Effective Cable Exercises For Back
Ab Exercises
The Body Solid EXM2500S exercises for abs are focused mainly on the mid pulley station, although you’ll also benefit from exercises with the low pulley station.
You can also get tougher workouts by performing cable crunches while sitting on the chest press or perfect pec station.
The low pulley is best for performing various rows, while the mid pulley is best for twists and bends.
Examples include:
Also Check Out - Best Cable Exercises For Abs & Obliques
Lower Body Exercises
To get the most benefits for your lower body, you’ll want to focus on the leg developer station. It helps you target your quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves.
That way, you can give yourself a comprehensive lower body workout.
Unfortunately, there is no EXM2500S leg press attachment, but that doesn’t mean you can’t keep your legs in good shape.
Your options include the:
Read Also - Best Cable Machine Exercises For Legs
Final Verdict
To conclude this portion of our Body Solid EXM2500S home gym review, we believe this is an excellent gym for anyone who’s not an athlete but just wants to keep fit, with a few limitations.
It could do with added stability options, like holes for drilling into the ground. Plus, it could benefit from a leg press and more than 210lbs in weight.
Pros & Cons Of The Body Solid EXM2500S
What We Like
What We Don’t Like
Unique Features Of The Body Solid EXM2500S Home Gym
We’ve written before on the subject of whether a home gym is worth it, and the Body Solid EXM2500S gym definitely stands out.
A 210lb weight stack, over 30 exercises, and reinforced pulleys make it an attractive choice.
Multiple Exercise Stations
Despite the upper-body bias, the Body Solid EXM2500S exercises are spread across six exercise stations, which we’ll cover in the sections below. These are:
There are two seats on the Body Solid Strengthtech EXM2500S, one at the pec station and the other at the chest press.
These are both adjustable, with seven positions for the pec seat and five for the chest press seat.
Heavy Duty High Tensile Steel Frame
The manufacturer chose the Body Solid EXM2500S parts with care, and that includes the steel frame.
It’s made of 2” by 4” 12 gauge steel, is very strong, and can handle a considerable amount of weight.
That includes your weight as the user and the 210lbs weight stack.
It’s vital that you feel comfortable using the machine to perform intense workouts, which means it needs to be heavy and sturdy. The high tensile steel frame ensures that’s the case.
DuraFirm Pads
It’s not just the frame that takes the weight when you’re using a home gym. It’s the seats as well. That’s why the seating on the Body Solid EXM2500S home gym has DuraFirm padding.
It allows you to sit down with a lot of weight without feeling uncomfortable.
The seats have about 2” of padding, which should be sufficient for what you’ll be using this home gym for. The padding also gives good back support.
Selectorized Weight Stack
The weight stack on the Body Solid EXM2500S gym is selectorized, meaning you don’t have to change the cables to add weights or adjust them. You can simply move the Body Solid EXM2500S weight stack selector ball pin into the position you require for your workout.
However, the weight stack has some light friction that prevents the plates from hitting each other, which can be a nuisance.
Read Also - Selectorized Vs Plate-Loaded Home Gyms
Comparing EXM2500S With Other Body Solid Home Gym Models
EXM2500S Vs EXM1500S
When comparing the Body Solid EXM2500S and the EXM1500S, we noticed the price of the EXM1500S is very similar, with only a few hundred dollars separating them.
When we looked at the features, we saw the weight stack is only 160lbs, which is considerably less than the EXM2500S. That means it won’t last you very long if you’re working out frequently.
However, it also has a lifetime warranty and 6 exercise stations, meaning you’ll be able to use it without concern and give yourself a full-body workout.
It’s simply not as comprehensive as the EXM2500S, but if you’re just looking for a way to maintain a basic level of fitness, it’s ideal.
See Also - Body Solid EXM1500S Review
EXM2500S Vs EXM3000LPS
Looking at the Body Solid EXM2500S vs EXM3000LPS, we noticed the latter is a big step-up.
Up to 3 people can use it at the same time, it has 7 workout stations, and it has a double weight stack, giving a total resistance of up to 420lbs depending on the exercises you do.
However, it’s much more expensive, at almost $5,000 compared to under $2,000 for the EXM2500S.
That means it’s only worth investing in if you’re dedicated to reaching professional levels with your fitness and want to work out with others.
Learn More - Body Solid EXM3000LPS Tested & Reviewed
EXM2500S Vs EXM4000S
As you might have guessed from the name, the EXM4000S is a step-up from the EXM2500S and the EXM3000LPS. It has a triple weight stack system for a combined total of 640lbs of resistance.
Plus, there are 10 exercise stations, meaning it covers every single muscle group in your body. If you’re an aspiring or current athlete, then this is the home gym for you.
It’s guaranteed with the same lifetime warranty and has all the advanced features and more that you'll find in the smaller EXM models.
However, the disadvantage again is the price point. It costs between $7000-$10,000, putting it out of the range of most gymgoers.
Read More - Complete Guide To Body Solid EXM4000S
Comparisons With Other Home Gyms Brands
Marcy Smith MD-9010 Cage With Linear Bearings
We wrote a separate review of the Marcy Smith MD-9010 cage, and we decided to compare it with the EXM2500S.
It provides a much more comprehensive range of exercises than the EXM2500S, with more than 100 being possible.
Unlike the EXM2500S, it's also suitable for use with weight plates that you can buy separately, and has an adjustable Olympic bar. That’s what allows you to perform so many exercises.
One unique feature that stands out is that the foot brace is diamond-plated, ensuring your feet won’t slip when performing seated rows.
However, the warranty only lasts for 2 years, so you’ll have to keep that in mind.
NordicTrack Fusion CST
Although not on our top gym equipment brands list, the NordicTrack Fusion CST is a decent home gym.
At around $1,900, its price is similar to the EXM2500S, and it also has some unique features that not many home gyms have.
It’s technologically advanced, allowing you to watch and participate in virtual training videos that can make digital adjustments to your gym as you work out.
If you’d like more guided workouts, then it’s an ideal choice. However, it lacks weight plates or weight stacks, meaning you can only do pulley exercises.
Also Check Out - NordicTrack Fusion CST Review
Assembling Instructions & General Maintenance Information
With more than 25 million Americans regularly exercising at home even before the pandemic, home gym manuals need clarity [2].
The Body Solid EXM2500S assembly instructions provide you with a list of parts and step-by-step diagrams to assemble the gym.
However, these diagrams come without any accompanying text, which makes them difficult to understand.
Often, each diagram will require you to complete several steps at once, but it’s not clear in what order you should do them.
You’ll also see a list of all the parts and how many of each part there are, but it’s definitely worth labeling them so that you don’t get confused, as there are a lot, and some look very similar in the diagrams.
That means you’ll need to do some extra reading to see how other people have dealt with it or pay to have someone assemble the EXM2500S for you.
The Body Solid EXM2500S manual [3] provides detailed safety precautions, and it’s worth familiarizing yourself with these.
You’ll find them on the third page, and there are over a dozen of them.
They take you through what to do before, during, and after you’ve assembled the EXM2500S home gym and give you contact information for Body Solid should you need it.
You’ll also find a maintenance schedule on the second page of the manual, which lists how often you should inspect each component.
Some require daily checks, like the cables and upholstery, whereas others like the guide rods only require weekly checks.
It’s reasonable to assume you can follow a similar schedule when cleaning the components too.
Frequently Asked Body Solid EXM2500S Questions
Does this machine come with accessories?
The Body Solid EXM2500S gym comes with an ab or tricep harness, ankle strap, and the lat bar as standard. Further accessories, like the weight plates, and a tricep rope, can be ordered separately on the Body Solid website.
Can two people use this machine at the same time?
There are some exercises that only one person can do because of the single weight stack. But because there are two seats, you can use some stations with someone else. An example would be you using the chest press station and someone else using the perfect pec station.
Is the weight stack shrouded?
No, the weight stack on the Body Solid EXM2500S home gym is not shrouded, meaning that you’ll hear the noise when they drop. However, the weight stack isn’t particularly high or heavy, so this shouldn’t cause any concerns.
Can I add more weight to the Body Solid EXM2500S Home Gym?
The weight stack itself isn’t upgradeable, but the weight plates are. You can tie additional ones onto the stack with a chain or buy red-colored premium plates. Another option is to purchase adapter plates allowing you to increment the weights by 2.5 and 5lbs.
Where can I buy replacement parts for the EXM2500S Home Gym?
Because the warranty is a lifetime warranty and covers all of the parts, you’ll be able to have your parts replaced directly through Body Solid so long as you obey the warranty. They’ll provide brand new parts or equivalent used parts.
Our Ratings
Workout Versatility
9.0
Value For Money
8.0
Ease Of Use
9.5
Ease Of Assembly
7.5
Materials & Durability
9.5
Overall Rating
8.7
Conclusion
Now that you’ve read our EXM2500S home gym review, you should know all the details for when you’re ready to make your decision.
If you’d like to look at some of the other brands, we also have home gym equipment reviews available for those too.
References:
1. https://www.statista.com/statistics/236139/us-wholesale-sales-of-home-gyms-consumer-segment/
2. https://www.statista.com/statistics/191614/participants-in-home-gym-exercise-in-the-us-since-2006/
3. https://www.bodysolid.com/home/exm2500s/exm2500s_home_gym/media_manuals
Last Updated on December 17, 2022
